Educational Funding
Details 2007 Congress Saves E2T2, Hikes '07 Funding Democrats' Budget Deal Will Boost Education Spending by $1.7 Billion--While Funding Key Educational Technology Programs at 2006 Levels : By Corey Murray, Senior Editor eSchool News : http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=6818> Congressional leaders have reached an agreement on the 2007 budget. The $463.5 billion spending package includes more than $1 billion in increases for education. Though the majority of educational technology programs, including the federal Enhancing Education Through Technology grant program, would be funded at the same level as in 2006, educational technology advocates said the deal should allow Congress to focus its attention on President Bush's 2008 budget proposal, scheduled for release next week. February 1, 2007 (Correction: eSchool News originally reported that Congress approved an increase of $1.7 billion in education funding in its 2007 budget agreement. The figure should have read $1.17 billion. eSchool News regrets the error.) Negotiations over the federal government's 2007 education budget have finally drawn to a close: On Jan. 30, Democratic leaders of the U.S. House and Senate appropriations committees unveiled a plan that would boost federal spending on public education by more than $1 billion for the remainder of the fiscal year, though funding for educational technology and many other programs would remain stagnant. The bill includes increases for students with disabilities, underprivileged schools, and early childhood education. But the majority of education initiatives--including the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT or "E2T2") block-grant program, the primary source of federal funding for school technology--would be "level-funded" under the deal, meaning they would get the same funding as in 2006. Last year, EETT received $275 million, down from $496 million in 2005. President Bush has asked Congress to eliminate the program entirely in each of the last three budget cycles. As news of the proposal spread throughout the nation's capital, education advocates who spoke with eSchool News said the agreement will enable lawmakers to focus their attention on Bush's 2008 budget request, slated for release in the second week of February. The federal government has been running on a series of continuing resolutions since the 2007 fiscal year began in October. "We view educational technology and increased funding of the EETT program as mission critical to helping modernize school practices to meet educational goals, address NCLB provisions, and ensure the nation's competitiveness," said Mark Schneiderman, director of education policy for the Washington, D.C.-based Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). "SIIA looks forward to working with our coalition and Congress to increase EETT funding in FY '08." "The level funding is critical for keeping the EETT programs in place and moving forward for students, but funding at this amount does not allow states, districts, and schools to maximize the potential for students," wrote Mary Ann Wolf, executive director of the State Educational Technology Directors Association. "Many states are seeing significant results in improving student achievement and closing the achievement gap with programs that utilize technology effectively, and increased funding will allow for the replication and scalability of these programs to help more students across the nation." "We were told it was to be a clean resolution," he said, "meaning no extraneous issues." Fortunately for schools that rely on federal eRate dollars, House and Senate leaders decided to make an exception. Links * Education